Wilkinson et al. showed linkage of asthma to markers on human chromosome 12 (Genomics, 53: 251-259 (1998)). In addition, Wilson et al. has shown that obesity may be linked to asthma (Arch. Intern. Med. 159: 2513-14 (1999)). In particular chromosomal region 12q23-qter has been linked to a variety of genetic disorders including male germ cell tumors, histidinemia, growth retardation with deafness and mental retardation, deficiency of Acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, spinal muscular atrophy, Darier disease, cardiomyopathy, Spinocerebellar ataxia-2, brachydactyl), Mevalonicaciduria, Hyperimmunoglobulinaemia D, Noonan syndrome-1, Cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, spinal muscular atrophy-4, tyrosinemia, phenylketonuria, B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Ulnar-mammary syndrome, Holt-Oram syndrome, Scapuloperoneal spinal muscular atrophy, alcohol intolerance, MODY, Diabetes mellitus, noninsulin-dependent, 2 and diabetes mellitus insulin-dependent (See National Center for Biotechnology Information at the website of: (hypertext transfer protocol, (i.e., http), world wide web, (i.e., www), National Center for Biotechnology Information (ncbi), National Library of Medicine (nlm), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Government (gov)/omim.). Although this region appears to contain genes affecting these disorders few genes have been discovered. There is a need in the art for identifying specific genes for such disorders because they are also associated with obesity and lung disease, particularly inflammatory lung disease phenotypes such as Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (COPD), Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and asthma. Identification and characterization of such genetic compositions will make possible the development of effective diagnostics and therapeutic means to treat lung related disorders as well as the other diseases described herein.